Democrats’ New Health Bill Takes Incremental Approach To Building On ACA Over Scrapping It For ‘Medicare For All’
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says the measure, to be unveiled today, will “strengthen protections for pre-existing conditions, reverse the G.O.P.’s health care sabotage and lower Americans’ health costs.” The legislation is in contrast to the progressive push for a single-payer system. Meanwhile, former President Barack Obama warns the new freshman class of lawmakers that they need to be cognizant of the price tag that comes with ambitious goals.
The New York Times:
House Democrats To Unveil Plan To Expand Health Coverage
Democrats won control of the House in large part on the strength of their argument that Congress needs to protect people with pre-existing medical conditions and to lower the cost of health care. On Tuesday, Democratic leaders, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi, will put aside, at least for now, the liberal quest for a government-run “Medicare for all” single-payer system and unveil a more incremental approach toward fulfilling those campaign promises. Building on the Affordable Care Act, they would offer more generous subsidies for the purchase of private health insurance offered through the health law’s insurance exchanges while financing new efforts to increase enrollment. (Pear, 3/25)
The Washington Post:
Obama Cautions Freshman House Democrats About The Price Tag Of Liberal Policies
Former president Barack Obama gently warned a group of freshman House Democrats Monday evening about the costs associated with some liberal ideas popular in their ranks, encouraging members to look at price tags, according to people in the room. Obama didn’t name specific policies. And to be sure, he encouraged the lawmakers — about half-dozen of whom worked in his own administration — to continue to pursue “bold” ideas as they shaped legislation during their first year in the House. But some people in the room took his words as a cautionary note about Medicare-for-All and the ambitious Green New Deal, two liberal ideas popularized by a few of the more famous House freshmen, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.). (Bade, 3/26)
And in other news from Capitol Hill —
The Hill:
House Dems To Hold Hearing On Preventing Surprise Medical Bills
House Democrats will hold a hearing on protecting patients from surprise medical bills next week, according to a congressional aide. A subcommittee of the Education and Labor Committee will convene the hearing April 2. Witnesses have not yet been announced. The hearing, which has not yet been publicly announced, was first reported by Vox. (Weixel, 3/25)
